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Inputs vs. Outcomes: Are You Using the Right Data to Measure ROI?

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Higher ed professionals face increasing pressure to collect data on the performance of our work, and to use that data to calculate their return on investment. Our directive these days seems to be "All data are good data."

That may be true. But not all data are the right data.

We discussed the topic with some of our customer schools last week at a roundtable hosted by Andy Shaindlin, founder of Alumni Futures and Vice President at GG&A. Andy raised the issue as a cautionary note about our growing obsession with performance metrics.

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How Binghamton's Fleishman Center Works with Alumni to Bolster Career Services

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At Switchboard, we believe that alumni are career services' biggest allies, and we're not alone. Thousands of career services offices collaborate with their colleagues in alumni relations and connect students with alumni to further their careers.

Binghamton University has made that interdisciplinary approach one of its specialties. Binghamton's Fleishman Center for Career and Professional Development works with the Office of Alumni Engagement to hold dozens of events with alumni speakers every year. Their Cool Alumni, Hot Connections speaker series provides career advice and connections for hundreds of students.

We asked Dr. Kelli Smith, Director of the Fleishman Center, to tell us about the event series.

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Heather Tranen Explains How UPenn Career Services Mastered Student Outreach

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Sometimes the most difficult part of helping students with career development is getting them in the door. Career Services offices have to compete for students' time and attention, and many students are intimidated by the false notion that they have to know exactly what they want to do with their lives before they can ask for help.

The University of Pennsylvania's Office of Career Services launched its recent #myPennPath campaign to solve these problems. With a combination of social media and in-person outreach, they were able to deliver help to students who wouldn't have otherwise received it and assuage their fears about career planning.  

Heather Tranen is an Associate Director on UPenn Career Services' College of Arts & Sciences team. We asked her to talk to us about the #myPennPath campaign, the importance of alumni outreach, and the future of career services.

Switchboard's Summer Conference Schedule

We'll be attending three conferences this summer:

NACE Conference & Expo | Chicago | June 7–10

ACSN Conference | Fort Worth | July 10–13

CASE Summit for Leaders in Advancement | NYC | July 17–19

If you'll be at one of these conferences and want to set up a time to talk about Switchboard or for a demo, drop me a line at kieran@switchboardhq.com.

We're excited to see you all there!

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Switchboard Joins the National Association of Colleges and Employers

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We're excited to announce that Switchboard is a newly minted member of the National Association of Colleges and Employers.

As career services expert Chaim Shapiro can testify, NACE is at the forefront of career services innovation in higher ed. Since 1956, NACE has set a high bar for career services professionals that has driven the profession forward and helped the field adapt even as it has rapidly transformed.

Our NACE membership will help us better serve our customers, just as it helps our customers better serve their constituents.

We'll be attending the 2016 NACE Conference & Expo in Chicago from June 7–10. If you'll be there too and want to say hi, drop me a line! We'd love to chat.

 

Learn more about Switchboard's alumni platform.

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Melanie Buford at the University of Cincinnati on Coaching Students and Alumni to Career Success

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Life after graduation is full of opportunity, but many students have trouble seeing past their fears about starting a career. It's the job of career services offices to help students see possibility in the unknown and find the courage to embrace it.

University of Cincinnati Career Counselor & Instructor Melanie Buford empowers students to take risks rather than fear them.

We asked her to share her thoughts on coaching students and young alumni through career uncertainty, teaching them to network, and getting them in the door in the first place.

"It is not from ourselves that we learn to be better than we are." —Wendell Berry